Carling Nations Cup to kick off with Republic of Ireland v Wales

The Republic of Ireland will meet Wales in the opening game of the Carling Nations Cup.

The four-team competition, which will be staged in Dublin, will start in February 2011 with Northern Ireland and Scotland also taking part.

Home sweet home: Former home international stars (from left to right) Ian Walsh (Wales), Pat Jennings (Northern Ireland), Craig Burley (Scotland) and Packie Bonner (Republic of Ireland) show their colours at the Carling Nations Cup launch

Giovanni Trapattoni's Republic open proceedings against the Welsh on Tuesday, February 9 with Northern Ireland and Scotland clashing a day later.

Trapattoni said: 'The Carling Nations Cup is a tournament that we would very much like to win, particularly playing at home in Dublin.

Sign of things to come: Wales took on Scotland in a thrilling friendly international last year

'The matches will provide us with a good opportunity to see our
players in games with a real competitive edge at an important time in
our bid to qualify for 2012.'